A&H

Hearing aids

Tim Punter

Tim Punter

Level 5 referee
Level 5 Referee
I was wondering if any other refs have experience reffing with hearing aids. This is my second season, and wear one, behind the year one, based during a match on Saturday really felt it was being used to make snidey comments, and querying decisions more than I think they should have. I couldn't identify a single incident of anyone doing this directly, but really felt an undercurrent of players moaning more than normal. I have tried a headband, but tthat draws attention to yourself even more.

Any advice and guidance from refs who do wear any, as I was thinking of leaving them off this weekend, to see if I get a different vibe during the match, but in danger then of not hearing key things during the game.
 
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I wear Aids.
But not when reffing. I don't even wear them to a game as I can get by without (moderate high frequency loss).
When I got them I asked about exercise and was told not to wear them when exercising.
 
JamesL said:
I wear Aids.
But not when reffing. I don't even wear them to a game as I can get by without (moderate high frequency loss).
When I got them I asked about exercise and was told not to wear them when exercising.
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Thanks for that, that’s really useful.
Might leave them at home this weekend. Suffer from tinitus, so probably in the medium loss range. The hearing aid might be amplifying every sound anyway, including the backchat!
 
I’m deaf in my left ear so have no surround sound and I do think I probably miss the odd bit of dissent here and there because I just don’t physically hear it or can’t identify which player it’s come from. The flip side of that is if I can tell, I can be pretty sure it’s worthy of a sanction.

The other aspect I struggle with is when the bench is calling for a sub - sometimes I just don’t hear. I’ve got round this by talking to coaches beforehand and asking them to pass any messages on through captains if I can’t hear. It’s seemed to work well so far.

Definitely a few of us out there!
 
I am in this team. But it’s not necessarily a bad thing. All I know is if I hear someone swearing towards me, they’ve done it with gusto and it’s worth a minimum of a chat!

I don’t have hearing aids yet and not sure I would if I had them when refereeing. Not sure the whistle tone would be good for ear health.
 
alexgr said:
I’m deaf in my left ear so have no surround sound and I do think I probably miss the odd bit of dissent here and there because I just don’t physically hear it or can’t identify which player it’s come from. The flip side of that is if I can tell, I can be pretty sure it’s worthy of a sanction.

The other aspect I struggle with is when the bench is calling for a sub - sometimes I just don’t hear. I’ve got round this by talking to coaches beforehand and asking them to pass any messages on through captains if I can’t hear. It’s seemed to work well so far.

Definitely a few of us out there!
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The subs advice is amazing, thank you, as that is a big annoyance
 
Muchomacho said:
I was wondering if any other refs have experience reffing with hearing aids. This is my second season, and wear one, behind the year one, based during a match on Saturday really felt it was being used to make snidey comments, and querying decisions more than I think they should have. I couldn't identify a single incident of anyone doing this directly, but really felt an undercurrent of players moaning more than normal. I have tried a headband, but tthat draws attention to yourself even more.

Any advice and guidance from refs who do wear any, as I was thinking of leaving them off this weekend, to see if I get a different vibe during the match, but in danger then of not hearing key things during the game.
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I would definitely add it to pre match chat with the managers .. I don’t see how being deaf or partially deaf has any effect on your ability to see a foul or not and I would tell people this if I had any inkling that they were moaning because of that!
 
Redref34 said:
I would definitely add it to pre match chat with the managers .. I don’t see how being deaf or partially deaf has any effect on your ability to see a foul or not and I would tell people this if I had any inkling that they were moaning because of that!
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It doesn't. And I love it when players say you're blind ref or similar. I say, "no I'm deaf!!” if the situation allows for it.
 
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